Drum brakes generally provide a pair of brake shoes slidably mounted relative to a backing plate and engageable with a hub to retard the rotation of the hub. Such drum brakes also dispose a hydraulic actuator and an adjustment mechanism between the pair of brake shoes at opposite locations. The pair of brake shoes are urged radially outwardly by the hydraulic actuator and the adjustment mechanism maintains a running clearance between the pair of brake shoes and the hub.
As the drum brake is disposed within the hub on a vehicle axle assembly and an axle shaft extends through a central opening on the backing plate, it is desirable to provide a simple drum brake construction which is narrow in the radial dimension.